The present invention relates to systems and methods for treating the structure of the natural human crystalline lens with a laser to address a variety of medical conditions such as presbyopia, refractive error and cataracts and combinations of these.
The anatomical structures of the eye are shown in general in FIG. 1, which is a cross sectional view of the eye. The sclera 131 is the white tissue that surrounds the lens 103 except at the cornea 101. The cornea 101 is the transparent tissue that comprises the exterior surface of the eye through which light first enters the eye. The iris 102 is a colored, contractible membrane that controls the amount of light entering the eye by changing the size of the circular aperture at its center (the pupil). The ocular or natural crystalline lens 103, a more detailed picture of which is shown in FIGS. 1A-F, (utilizing similar reference numbers for similar structures) is located just posterior to the iris 102. The terms ocular lens, natural crystalline lens, natural lens, natural human crystalline lens, and lens (when referring to the prior terms) are used interchangeably herein and refer to the same anatomical structure of the human eye.
Generally, the ocular lens changes shape through the action of the ciliary muscle 108 to allow for focusing of a visual image. A neural feedback mechanism from the brain allows the ciliary muscle 108, acting through the attachment of the zonules 111, to change the shape of the ocular lens. Generally, sight occurs when light enters the eye through the cornea 101 and pupil, then proceeds through the ocular lens 103 through the vitreous 110 along the visual axis 104, strikes the retina 105 at the back of the eye, forming an image at the macula 106 that is transferred by the optic nerve 107 to the brain. The space between the cornea 101 and the retina 105 is filled with a liquid called the aqueous 117 in the anterior chamber 109 and the vitreous 110, a gel-like clear substance, in the chamber posterior to the lens 103.
FIG. 1A illustrates, in general, components of and related to the lens 103 for a typical 50-year old individual. The lens 103 is a multi-structural system. The lens 103 structure includes a cortex 113, and a nucleus 129, and a lens capsule 114. The capsule 114 is an outer membrane that envelopes the other interior structures of the lens. The lens epithelium 123 forms at the lens equatorial 121 generating ribbon-like cells or fibrils that grow anteriorly and posteriorly around the ocular lens. The nucleus 129 is formed from successive additions of the cortex 113 to the nuclear regions. The continuum of layers in the lens, including the nucleus 129, can be characterized into several layers, nuclei or nuclear regions. These layers include an embryonic nucleus 122, a fetal nucleus 130, both of which develop in the womb, an infantile nucleus 124, which develops from birth through four years for an average of about three years, an adolescent nucleus 126, which develops from about four years until puberty, which averages about 12 years, and the adult nucleus 128, which develops at about 18 years and beyond. The embryonic nucleus 122 is about 0.5 mm in equatorial diameter (width) and 0.425 mm in Anterior-Posterior axis 104 (AP axis) diameter (thickness). The fetal nucleus 130 is about 6.0 mm in equatorial diameter and 3.0 mm in AP axis 104 diameter. The infantile nucleus 124 is about 7.2 mm in equatorial diameter and 3.6 mm in AP axis 104 diameter. The adolescent nucleus 126 is about 9.0 mm in equatorial diameter and 4.5 mm in AP axis 104 diameter. The adult nucleus 128 at about age 36 is about 9.6 mm in equatorial diameter and 4.8 mm in AP axis 104 diameter. These are all average values for a typical adult human lens approximately age 50 in the accommodated state, ex vivo. Thus, this lens (nucleus and cortex) is about 9.8 mm in equatorial diameter and 4.9 mm in AP axis 104 diameter. Thus, the structure of the lens is layered or nested, with the oldest layers and oldest cells towards the center.
The lens is a biconvex shape as shown in FIGS. 1 and 1A. The anterior and posterior sides of the lens have different curvatures, and the cortex and the different nuclei in general follow those curvatures. Thus, the lens can be viewed as essentially a stratified structure that is asymmetrical along the equatorial axis and consisting of long crescent fiber cells arranged end-to-end to form essentially concentric or nested shells. The ends of these cells align to form suture lines in the central and paracentral areas both anteriorly and posteriorly. The older tissue in both the cortex and nucleus has reduced cellular function, having lost their cell nuclei and other organelles several months after cell formation.
Compaction of the lens occurs with aging. The number of lens fibers that grow each year is relatively constant throughout life. However, the size of the lens does not become as large as expected from new fiber growth. The lens grows from birth through age 3, from 6 mm to 7.2 mm or 20% growth in only 3 years. Then, in the next approximate decade, growth is from 7.2 mm to 9 mm or 25%; however, this is over a 3 times longer period of 9 years. Over the next approximate two decades, from age 12 to age 36, the lens grows from 9 mm to 9.6 mm or 6.7% growth in 24 years, showing a dramatically slowing observed growth rate, while we believe there is a relatively constant rate of fiber growth during this period. Finally, in the last approximately 2 decades described, from age 36 to age 54, the lens grows by a tiny fraction of its youthful growth, from 9.6 to 9.8 mm or 2.1% in 18 years. Although there is a geometry effect of needing more lens fibers to fill larger outer shells, the size of the older lens is considerably smaller than predicted by fiber growth rate models, which consider geometry effects. Fiber compaction including nuclear fiber compaction is thought to explain these observations.
In general, presbyopia is the loss of accommodative amplitude. In general, refractive error is typically due to variations in the axial length of the eye. Myopia is when the eye is too long resulting in the focus falling in front of the retina. Hyperopia is when the eye is too short resulting in the focus falling behind the retina. In general, cataracts are areas of opacification of the ocular lens which are sufficient to interfere with vision. Other conditions, for which the present invention is directed, include but are not limited to the opacification of the ocular lens.
Presbyopia most often presents as a near vision deficiency, the inability to read small print, especially in dim lighting after about 40-45 years of age. Presbyopia, or the loss of accommodative amplitude with age, relates to the eye's inability to change the shape of the natural crystalline lens, which allows a person to change focus between far and near, and occurs in essentially 100% of the population. Accommodative amplitude has been shown to decline with age steadily through the fifth decade of life.
Historically, studies have generally attributed loss of accommodation to the hardening of the crystalline lens with age and more specifically, to an increase in the Young's Modulus of Elasticity of the lens material. More recent studies have examined the effect of aging on the relative change in material properties between the nucleus and cortex. These studies have provided varying theories and data with respect to the hardening of the lens. In general, such studies have essentially proposed the theory that the loss of flexibility is the result of an increase in the Young's Modulus of Elasticity of the nucleus and/or cortex material. Such studies have viewed this hardening as the primary factor in the loss of accommodative amplitude with age and hence the cause of presbyopia.
Although the invention is not bound by it, the present specification postulates a different theory of how this loss of lens flexibility occurs to cause presbyopia. In general, it is postulated that the structure of the lens, rather than the material properties of the lens, plays a greater role in loss of flexibility and resultant presbyopia than was previously understood. Thus, contrary to the teachings of the prior studies in this field as set forth above, material elasticity is not the dominate cause of presbyopia. Rather, it is postulated that the structure of the lens and changes in that structure with age are the dominant cause of presbyopia. Thus, without being limited to or bound by this theory, the present invention discloses a variety of methods and systems to provide laser treatments to increase the flexibility of the lens, based at least in part on the structure of the lens and structural changes that occur to the lens with aging. The present invention further discloses providing laser treatments to increase the flexibility of the lens that are based primarily on the structure of the lens and structural changes that occur to the lens with aging.
Accordingly, the postulated theory of this specification can be illustrated for exemplary purposes by looking to and examining a simple hypothetical model. It further being understood this hypothetical model is merely to illustrate the present theory and not to predict how a lens will react to laser pulses, and/or structural changes. To understand how important structure alone can be, consider a very thin plank of wood, say 4 ft by 4 ft square but 0.1 inch thick. This thin plank is not very strong and if held firmly on one end, it does not take much force to bend this thin plank considerably. Now consider five of these same 0.1 inch thickness planks stacked on top of each other, but otherwise not bound or tied together. The strength would increase and for the same force a somewhat smaller deflection will occur. Now, consider taking those same five planks and fastening them together with many screws or by using very strong glue, or by using many C-Clamps to bind them together. The strength of the bound planks is much higher and the deflection seen from the same force would be much smaller.
Without saying this simple model reflects the complex behavior of the lens, we generally hypothesize that when considering a volume of lens material, especially near the poles (AP axis), that is essentially bound by increased friction and compaction due to aging, that separating those bound layers into essentially unbound layers will increase the deflection of those layers for the same applied force and hence increase flexibility of the lens. Applicants, however, do not intend to be bound by the present theory, and it is provided solely to advance the art, and is not intended to and does not restrict or diminish the scope of the invention,
Thus, further using this model for illustration purposes, under the prior theories and treatments for presbyopia, the direction was principally toward the material properties, i.e., Modulus of the material in the stack, rather than on the structure of the stack, i.e., whether the layers were bound together. On the other hand, the presently postulated theory is directed toward structural features and the effects that altering those features have on flexibility.
In general, current presbyopia treatments tend to be directed toward alternatives to increasing the amplitude of accommodation of the natural crystalline lens. These treatments include a new class of artificial accommodative Intraocular Lenses (IOL's), such as the Eyeonics CRYSTALENS, which are designed to change position within the eye; however, they offer only about 1 diopter of objectively measured accommodative amplitude, while many practitioners presently believe 3 or more diopters are required to restore normal visual function for near and far objects. Moreover, researchers are pursuing techniques and materials to refill the lens capsule with synthetic materials. Additionally, present surgical techniques to implant artificial accommodative IOL's are those developed for the more serious condition of cataracts. It is believed that practitioners are reluctant at the present time to replace a patient's clear albeit presbyopic natural crystalline lens, with an accommodative IOL due to the risks of this invasive surgical technique on a patient who may simply wear reading glasses to correct the near vision deficiency. However, developments may offer greater levels of accommodative amplitude in implantable devices and refilling materials. To better utilize such device improvements and to increase the accommodative amplitude of existing implantable devices, improved surgical techniques are provided herein as a part of the present invention.
Refractive error, typically due to the length of the eye being too long (myopia) or too short (hyperopia) is another very common problem effecting about one-half of the population. Laser surgery on the cornea, as proposed by Trokel and L'Esperance and improved by Frey and others, does offer effective treatment of refractive errors but factors such as higher degrees of refractive error, especially in hyperopia, thin corneas or a changing refractive error with time, such as that brought on by presbyopia, limit the clinical use of laser corneal surgery for many.
Cataracts, or the condition when the natural crystalline lens becomes opaque and clouds vision, occurs in millions of people per year and are treated effectively with a surgical techniques such as ultrasonic phacoemulsification pioneered by Kelman 30 years ago. Although the techniques have been refined over the years, safety concerns from ocular trauma, especially to the corneal endothelium from the ultrasonic energy required to break up a hardened cataract is undesirable; especially for those with a compromised corneal endothelium, such as those with Fuchs Dystrophy. Moreover, the use of lasers in the treatment of cataracts has a further issue. Cataracts scatter light, including laser light and thus can prevent a laser treatment beam from having the desired tissue effect. Accordingly, as provided in detail in this specification improvements in the delivery of lasers to cataractous tissue are provided herein.